Steele mackaye



(No Model.)

S. MAGKAYEL APPLIANCE FOR THEATERS.

NO. 490,489. Patented Jan. 24, 1893.

:illlllllll'l llll IIIIIIIIIIIIQIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE.

STEELE MACKAYE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO THE SPECTATORIACOMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

APPLIANCE FOR THEATERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 490,489, dated January24., 1893. Application filed May 25, 1892. Serial No. 484,297. (Nomodel-)1 T at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, STEELE MAOKAYE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,

5 have invented certain 11 ewand useful Im provements in Appliances forTheaters, &c.; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear-,and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to [O which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention relates to stage appliances, and the object is to providemeans by which the performance or scene which is being exhibited may beautomaticallyexplained or in- I5 terpreted by a silent unfoldingannouncer Without subjecting the audience to the annoyance incident toan oral explanation when required to render the performance or scenicexhibition intelligible and interesting to the audience.

The invention will be hereinafter described and particularlypointed outin the claims at the end of this specification.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in

which similar letters of reference are used to denote similar parts,Figure 1 represents a perspective View of a part of the proscenium of atheater illustrating my improvement applied thereto, and Fig. 2 is adetail fragmeno tary sectional View of parts of the device.

P, denotes one of the side flanges or walls of the proscenium of atheater or other similar structure, P the proscenium opening, and S,scenery or scenic arrangements on the stage .35 or stages in rear ofsuch openin A, denotes a traveling sheet or strip of cloth, paper, orother suitable material, on which may be written or printed in anypreferred manner or style any desired notice, ad-

4 vertisement, explanation, description, or interpretation, in brief, orin full, or outline of the order to be pursued, or the subjects embracedin any exercise or entertainment; such explanations or interpretationsbeing adapted to be exhibited simultaneously with the presentation orexhibition of the performance or scenic arrangements, so that theaudience may comprehend the meaning of various acts, scenes, part-scenesor representations without the necessity of an oral explanation, therebydispensing with a public lecturer or interpreter and overcoming theobjections incident to such practices, which are rendered necessaryinpresenting panoramas and various other entertainments wherein themeaning is not obvious to the ordinary observer.

L, L, denote a series of electric (or other suitable) lamps, borderingthe sheet or strip A, at the side of the proscenium opening, and at thetop of the sheet, said lamps being set in backings or reflectors R, R,which serve also as screens, permitting the light to fall on theannouncing sheet only, and excluding the light from the prosceniumopening so as not to interfere with the illumination of the picture,painting or scenic effect in the scenatorium. These deflectors R, B, maybe of any desired form suitable for the purpose, but preferably consistof tin-plate or other metal strips having concave reflecting surfaces inwhich the lamps are set, as shown. The sheet or strip A may be woundupon an upper roller a, and pass thence over a lower roller a, thelatter being provided with a band wheel or pulley over which may beplaced a belt or band B, which may connect with a similar pulley orwheel fixed upon a crank-axle or other suitable shaft, by which motionmay be imparted to the roller a, so as to cause the same to revolve atany desired rate of speed, for the purpose of moving the sheet andexhibiting the written or printed matter thereon at the proper time andin the desired order to conform to the order of arrangement orpresentation of the scenic effects, performance, or exercise.

I am aware that a movable transparency bearing the words or score of anopera, play or other form of exhibition has heretofore been used toexhibit to the audience the words 0 or other symbols of the utterancesof the singers, players or speakers by causing the transparency to movepast an opening arranged between the audience and thelight, its movementbeing timed to bring the words as they 5 are uttered past such opening.Hence I make no broad claim to such contrivances, but

What I do claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

1. An automatic announcer or silent inter- I00 preter for theaters andother places of amusement, comprising a sheet of cloth or other suitablematerial bearing thereon the words that are to be uttered by the singersor performers and arranged in proximity to the proscenium opening inposition to be moved so as to exhibit in the desired order the eX-planatory matter thereon simultaneously with the presentation orexhibition of theexercise or performance, a series of lamps arranged inthe form of a border about said sheet, a backing in which said lamps areset adapted to throw the light upon the sheet and screen the prosceniumopening, and means for moving the cloth past the lamps, substantially asdescribed.

2. The combination with the proscenium of a theater or other similarstructure, provided with an automatic announcing sheet or silentinterpreter, consisting of a traveling sheet of In testimony whereof Iaiiix my signature in 30 presence of two witnesses.

STEELE MACKAYE.

Witnesses:

POWEL CROSLEY, SIDNEY CLARKE WHITE, J r.

